Various embodiments of a vehicle seat frame are described herein. In particular, the embodiments described herein relate to an improved vehicle seat frame and an improved method for manufacturing a vehicle seat frame.
Vehicle seat frames typically include a seat back mounted on a seat cushion or bottom. The seat back is pivotally mounted on the seat bottom for adjusting the seat back at a desired inclined angle relative to the seat bottom. The seat bottom is commonly mounted on the floor of the vehicle such that the position of the seat relative to the floor can be adjusted. Typically, some components of the seat frame are formed from steel and other metals and at least some of the components are fixedly connected to one another by welding.
One example of known methods of assembling a vehicle seat structure using combinations of welding and threaded fasteners is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,281,766.
It is also know to fixedly connect vehicle components with fasteners supplemented by structural adhesive. A vehicle door formed by such a method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,097,742, wherein structural adhesive is used in combination with rivets to bond two or more vehicle door components together.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,922,882 discloses also discloses using structural adhesive to provide additional strength to a welded joint between two tubular members.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,035,516 discloses using swaging to secure or fixedly connect a head rest support into a vehicle seat frame for which welding is used in the seat frame assembly process.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,250,091 discloses a method of forming a seating system wherein elongated ribs 60 in a first panel are disposed within corresponding channels 56 in a second panel. Adhesive 66 is further provided between the panels.
Outside of the seat frame assembly industry, it is also known to form a non-pivoting connection between a tube and a flat plate or member by means of swaging two portions of the tube to form radially outwardly extending beads, thereby trapping the bracket therebetween. Such a method is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,823,575. Although this method may provide adequate support such that the plate is generally prevented from undesirable axial movement, this known method of swaging does not permit a pivoting connection between the tube and the plate.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/075,946, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses a using a swaging process to define a pivot joint in a vehicle seat frame.